Someone, somewhere once said that the average number of recipes people cook from a cookbook is 3. Get recipes, tips and NYT special offers delivered straight to your inbox. would recommend.) It goes with everything, and you’ll be glad you made it. But that has never stopped me from being enthusiastic about Thanksgiving, a holiday that’s dedicated almost exclusively to cooking and eating, my two favorite things. If you’re planning on supplying wine — I like to, because I am a control freak and want to make sure I’m drinking fantastic things all night long — place an order at a local wine shop for pickup or delivery. Instead of tossing everything, I pack a cooler with ice and use it to store all the weird mustards and miscellaneous condiments I refuse to part with. (I won’t tell you I’ve done this in the bathtub for space reasons, even though I have; F.Y.I., this is not what the F.D.A. My goal is 6 p.m., so I’ll put the bird in around 2 p.m., which means that around 1 p.m., I’ll remove it from the fridge and prepare it for roasting. Putting the turkey in the oven starts the true Thanksgiving countdown clock. I place my delivery order to arrive the day before Thanksgiving, which always makes me feel more relaxed, knowing that at least some food is going to arrive at some point. This is my four-day weekend. To avoid unnecessary personal meltdowns while cooking this meal, I’ve learned to match my expectations with my reality. We spent three days in her kitchen as she cooked, hosted and served some controversial opinions about the classic holiday meal. Photographs copyright © 2019 by Michael Graydon and Nikole Herriott. Since I’m not going to be making the gravy on the actual baking sheet, I scrape up all the bits and pour them into a measuring cup with the Cheater’s Turkey Stock. (You’ll use them to make your Cheater’s Turkey Stock.). All deleted. I pull the crust from the fridge to soften slightly while I slice the apples and toss them with the honey, cinnamon and other ingredients. For storage of beverages I’d like to keep cold, I either put things out on the fire escape (assuming it’s cold outside), or fill half my bathtub or an extra sink with ice and keep bottles and cans in there. “The first time I made this it was peak WSS, and I still found myself shamelessly eating it with my hands, dragging each caramelized wedge through the lemony yogurt and buttery pistachios, swiping leftovers with my fingers, licking them clean like some sort of animal. And please write if anything goes sideways. Oh, also, candles (everyone looks great in candlelight). Once baked and scraped into noodle-like strands, spaghetti squash becomes a frequent pasta understudy, tossed with pesto, tomato sauce or roasted vegetables. If you don’t do delivery, send someone you trust to the store instead, or make a run yourself. Designed and produced by Gray Beltran, Kim Gougenheim and Rebecca Lieberman. Then I add broth, whisked together with a few eggs, and toss the whole mixture a few times like I’m working the salad station at Sweetgreen. I have written at least half a dozen opening sentences to this ‘review’, alternately trying to be clever, subtle, witty. To submit a letter to the editor for publication, write to letters@nytimes.com . This is the first bake that cooks the stuffing through. Setting the table and making space for every dish is romantic in theory, but never seems to work with the size of my dining room (not large) and the size of my guest list (large). Season with salt and pepper, and roast until the squash is totally tender and golden brown with caramelized bits, 40 to 50 minutes. For the sides, I’ll make creamy potatoes, a sweet orange vegetable and a savory green vegetable. This is my favorite part of the day, maybe even the year. I am not a centerpiece or flower arrangement person, but I am a sucker for festive décor, like wild-looking leaves or branches that aren’t too pretty or pristine. I’ll make my first (but definitely not last) Chemex of the day. (If you don’t have a credenza, use a kitchen island, countertop or whatever credenza-esque thing you’ve got.) It’s better to have the turkey roasted and resting than to have to wait for it to finish, so get it in sooner rather than later. on Russia’s meddling in the election of the president of Madagascar. I season and then combine the celery mixture with the bread in the largest bowl I have. Now at least two tasks have been done, which makes me feel pretty accomplished. Then I prepare the dry brine, a basic mixture of salt, pepper, thyme and brown sugar; I prefer my turkey to be well seasoned but classic, so the side dishes are the boldest things on the table. You’ll find thousands more ideas for what to cook on NYT Cooking. Required fields are marked *. I was fishing east of the Breezy Point jetty over the weekend, maybe a mile out from the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens, drifting quick on the tide. Once the galette is in the oven, I start on the stuffing so it can go in for its first bake once the galette is out. But looking at the number of books that have been produced over the last twenty years, not to mention the recipes digitally available to us, it’s not hard to surmise that that person might actually be right. This is the only reason to host Thanksgiving. “For those on the East Coast,” Roman writes, “Winter Squash Season is a real ‘thing.’ At first, it’s very exciting because it also means that it’s Chunky Sweater Season and everyone is feeling extremely cozy, thrilled to be outside without sweating profusely. No dried fruit, no dicing the bread. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC. Season with flaky salt and set aside. I follow that with the food, like the carved bird, baking dish of stuffing and side dishes. and toss the squash on a rimmed baking sheet with the olive oil. Speaking of which, please read Michael Schwirtz and Gaelle Borgia on Russia’s meddling in the election of the president of Madagascar, in The Times. Surely there are others like me! Food Stylist: Barrette Washburne. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Nothing Fancy; Dining In; RECIPES. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. The tone is super-conversational and casual: your talkative, confident, annoyingly talented but ultimately helpful friend in the kitchen. Opt out or, large (3- to 4-pound) spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded, ounces mozzarella, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (optional). You’ll love it. But I wouldn’t necessarily ignore the collection of recipes just because you feel you’re not the target demographic. Alison Roman’s Roasted Squash with Yogurt and Spiced Buttered Pistachios, Baileys Pumpkin Spice and Original Irish Cream Bundt Cake, Roasted Squash with Yogurt and Spiced, Buttered Pistachios, Michael Graydon and Nikole Herriott/Nothing Fancy. You know what else is good? I carve the breast into ½-inch-thick slices, but I know that thickness is a personal preference. Here’s the true story of Alison Roman’s Thanksgiving feast (above), which she cooked for us and a bunch of her friends in her New York City apartment recently, laboring over a tiny stove. I really think that if you buy this book you’ll cook so much from it over the next twenty four months you’ll have two decades value from it already. Sign up for PureWow to get more ideas like these (It’s free!). Not since I removed its giblets have I been so intimate with a turkey. Remove from the heat and add the pistachios, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon and crushed red-pepper flakes, if using. While all the food is being set out, I delegate someone to open wine so there’s more than one bottle circulating. Many people will tell you to order your turkey about a month ahead. Once the oven is free, I remove the foil from the baking dish and place the stuffing back in the oven to crisp. I’ve already mentioned this, but if you’re just tuning in: Stuffing is my favorite thing, and I have a lot of opinions on it. Spoon the yogurt sauce into the bottom of a large serving platter or bowl. I’ve always thought roasting a turkey is like roasting a giant chicken, which I’d just do on a baking sheet. Arrange the squash nestled into each other and spoon the buttered pistachios over everything.